


One Hour

by just_ann_now



Category: Points - Melissa Scott & Lisa A. Barnett
Genre: First Time, M/M, Male Friendship, Missing Scene, Seduction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-18
Updated: 2013-11-18
Packaged: 2018-01-01 21:40:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1048878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/just_ann_now/pseuds/just_ann_now
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Sometimes I think, one hour. Just one hour in my bed, to get him out of my system."</p><p>"And if you could slow down time, to make that hour seem as though it were two, as if time had stopped in your chamber -"</p><p>"I'd take it in a heartbeat."</p>
            </blockquote>





	One Hour

**Author's Note:**

  * For [JanLevine](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JanLevine/gifts).



> I hope you enjoy reading this Treat as much as I enjoyed writing it. Happy Yuletide!

Istre b'Estorr and Nicolas Rathe had been friends for a long time, so it didn't take any great magistical skills for Istre to notice that something was bothering Nico. So, as friends do, he invited him to dinner, and, over the wine, began attempting to pick apart the pointsman's defenses. It couldn't be a recent case – since the triumphant return of the stolen children, the city had be remarkably peaceful. It probably wasn't money, not any more than usual for a pointsman whose integrity wouldn't allow him to accept additional fees for doing the job for which he was paid. That left - 

"I know what it is," Istre said. 

"What what is?" Nico replied. He'd been staring into his wineglass, holding it against the candlelight, saying nothing for several long moments. Even the ghosts in the room were quietly attentive, not wandering about as usual. 

"It's Philip Eslingen. You want him, but you haven't -"

"Istre, don't. I really can't talk about this, sorry."

"Why can't you talk about it, or why can't you have him? I saw the two of you while we were at Mailhac rescuing the children, and after. He feels the same as you, I'm sure of it. You're both grown men. Why can't - "

"Because I'm a pointsman, and he's the knife to one of the most notorious crime lords in Astreiant. And I, for my sins, put him there. I can't, we can't...."

"Surely you can. You are both men of discretion. Have you two talked this out, at all?"

"We have not. I'm trying not to think about it. I'm, but I can't, I can't even, not even someone else. I can't –" His voice was low with misery. "Sometimes I think, one hour. Just one hour in my bed, to get him out of my system. Perhaps he has bad breath, or farts, or is a selfish lover. An hour should do it."

Istre stared at him unspeaking, for a long moment. "What is it?" Nico asked. "Istre, what-"

"If you had only one hour. And you could slow down time, to make that hour seem as though it were two, as if time had stopped in your chamber -"

"One hour, slowed to two? I'd do it. I'd take it in a heartbeat. But how, it doesn't seem possible. And at what price?" 

Istre pushed himself away from the table. He crossed the room to a chest of carved oak, gilded and painted in the elaborate Chadroni style. He opened the chest, pulled out tunics and trews, handkerchiefs and smallclothes, tossing them to the floor, until he uncovered a small leather box. He returned and placed it on the table between them. 

"Open it," he said. 

Giving his friend a quizzical look, Nico opened the box. Inside was a small silk-wrapped bundle, scented of vetiver. Slowly and carefully he unwrapped it, to find a tiny clock, enameled bronze inlaid with mother of pearl. It was small enough to fit in his hand. 

"What -" he asked. 

"It was a gift to me, from a horologist at court in Chadron. What this clock will do is slow down time for you – it will turn your perception of one hour into two." He paused. "I want you to have it." 

Nico gasped. "Such powerful magic – how, I cannot, how could anyone..." Nico said. "Why would you give me such a gift?"

"Because you are my friend, and I trust you to use it well. Each bearer can only use it once, and I...I used it when my little daughter died." His voice roughened. "I wanted one more hour with her, but that hour was full of her gasping, fighting for each breath. My selfishness caused her an additional hour of pain. But you, Nico – you can use it for an hour of joy, an hour of pleasure. The price you pay is in how you spend that hour, for good or ill. " 

"Istre, I don't know what to say. I didn't even know that you had had-"

"No matter; I don't speak of her very much. I don't even know why I've kept the clock for so long." He smiled. "I must have known that one day I would have a friend who could make good use of it." 

He straightened up, suddenly businesslike. "How to use it. It must be used in an enclosed space – four walls, floor, ceiling. It won't work outdoors, or under a dome." He grinned. "Your room would be just right. To activate it, cup it in your hands, and wind it three times, counter-clockwise. You will hear a single chime, and then, the same tone again when your hour is over." He smiled. "Use it well, my friend." 

~*~

The chicken and greens were deliciously seasoned, and the cheese and pears were perfectly ripe. The wine tasted sweet and golden as long summer days. They sat companionably, quiet, as the sense of warmth and comfort grew between them. Nico cocked his head; Philip smiled. Nico reached out for Philip's hand, running his fingers down towards the palm, stroking it gently. 

"Nico, are you seducing me?" Philip murmured, grinning. 

"Stay," Nico replied.

"I shouldn't. This can't end well for us, you know. Who you are, who I am. This won't work, and I'm not in the mood for more disappointment. This summer has held enough - "

"Let's leave all that outside these walls for an hour. Just one hour, Philip, that's all I ask."

Philip sighed. "This is not a good idea." Then he rose, pulling Nico towards him. 

They simply stood together for a moment, breathing deeply of each other's scent. Then they moved slowly toward's Nico's rumpled bed. Philip kicked off his boots, and lay back; Nico smiled down at him. But rather than joining him on the bed, he instead reached for the leather box on the nightstand. He pulled out a small enameled clock and, cupping it in his hand, wound it carefully, three turns counter-clockwise. A low, clear chime, like a temple bell, shimmered in the air. 

"Do you have another appointment later, that you need to set your clock?" Philip asked. His voice was playful, but there was an undertone of confusion, of doubt. 

Nico bent and kissed him, long and slow. 

"Not at all," he said. "I'd slow down time, if I could, to make this night last."

Once started, they felt no need to hurry. They were not boys, flushed with the first frantic heat of youthful desire; they knew how to appreciate the texture of skin, the scent and taste of a bared nape, the hollow of the throat. Buttons and laces were unfastened slowly, carefully, as if the flesh being revealed underneath was a rare and precious gift. And so it was. Scars were studied, kissed, caressed, respected as the badges of honor they were for both men. Nico's broad shoulders, and Philip's powerful thighs – their bodies fit together as smoothly as if designed by a craftsman. 

_This is what I've needed,_ Nico thought. Not just the touch of flesh against flesh, but the warmth – Philip's warmth. How did we come to this? It can't end well, but oh, this night – tomorrow will come, bearing its own griefs, but ah, tonight—let this hour last forever. 

_Why did it have to be him,_ Philip thought. This city is full of men, and women, too; why is it that he is the only one who has stirred me, since the moment we met? I'm not a fool, to imagine I can live on love, but oh, the memory of this hour will warm me all winter, until I leave in the spring. It will have to. 

Afterwards they slept entwined, Philip's breath soft against Nico's neck, until a single chimed note awoke them. 

"Is it morning?" Philip mumbled sleepily. "I don't want it to be."

"No, it's only been an hour," Nico replied. He turned to Philip, wrapping his arms around him. "It's not anywhere near first sunrise. We have lots more time. Stay." 

"Umm..." Philip mumbled. He kissed Nico, and then he kissed him again. "I'd like to. Another hour. “

"Another hour," Nico agreed. _One hour at a time._


End file.
